Yeah, like dragonwriter says, I never see this on the left. The left is almost always coming out and saying "This is what's wrong with America, and we should fix it."
I can't remember ever seeing any left-leaning or progressive type throw up their hands and say, "well, that just won't work here."
I will acknowledge that political conservatives or right-leaning types often do suggest that problems are solvable, but these days I only ever see right-leaning types suggesting that "the free market" will solve a problem (and, conversely, if it's one of the large class of things that the free market can't solve, then it is either not a problem or it is not solvable).
Still, the whole "it can't be done here" is, if not right-leaning, at least a conservative attitude in the sense of not trying to change anything. It just adds in an extra layer of (often irrelevant or nonsensical) defeatism, like the problem is unsolvable, and not just difficult.
It's weird, because we could put people on the moon, but a city can't adapt to a more bike-friendly way of life?
I can't remember ever seeing any left-leaning or progressive type throw up their hands and say, "well, that just won't work here."
I will acknowledge that political conservatives or right-leaning types often do suggest that problems are solvable, but these days I only ever see right-leaning types suggesting that "the free market" will solve a problem (and, conversely, if it's one of the large class of things that the free market can't solve, then it is either not a problem or it is not solvable).
Still, the whole "it can't be done here" is, if not right-leaning, at least a conservative attitude in the sense of not trying to change anything. It just adds in an extra layer of (often irrelevant or nonsensical) defeatism, like the problem is unsolvable, and not just difficult.
It's weird, because we could put people on the moon, but a city can't adapt to a more bike-friendly way of life?